Of 80 patients with newly diagnosed cytomegalovirus retinitis who were randomized to receive induction therapy with oral valganciclovir--a prodrug that is rapidly hydrolyzed to ganciclovir--l0% experienced progression of the retinitis during the first 4 weeks of therapy, and 71.

Despite high unmet need, the market for the small molecules used to manage conditions such as genital and oral herpes, genital warts, cytomegalovirus retinitis and pneumonia or shingles has been neglected compared with the successfully promoted immunizations for varicella in children, zoster in adults, or human papilloma virus in adolescents.

75, or more than 20 percent, on Friday, prompting a halt in trading, when it was disclosed that the company's drug Vistide, under review as a treatment to prevent blindness from cytomegalovirus retinitis in AIDS patients, had caused tumors in female laboratory rats.

Cidofovir and tenofovir are polar, acyclic nucleoside phosphonates that are FDA-approved as Vistide (cidofovir injection) for the treatment of cytomegalovirus retinitis, and as Viread (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) for the treatment of HIV.

These include Viread for the treatment of HIV, marketed exclusively by Gilead; Hepsera for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B, for which Gilead has retained rights in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand and for which GlaxoSmithKline has licensed rights in Asia, Latin America and select other territories; Vistide(R) (cidofovir injection) for the treatment of cytomegalovirus retinitis, marketed in the United States by Gilead and internationally by Pharmacia Corporation; and Tamiflu(R) (oseltamivir phosphate) for the treatment and prevention of influenza, marketed worldwide by Hoffmann-La Roche.

All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional.